Organic Chemistry: Enantiomers and Diastereomers
Terms
Absolute configuration
-
The arrangement of atoms about a stereocenter, denoted in an unambiguous way.
Achiral
-
An object thatis superimposable on (identical to) its mirror image.
Cahn-Ingold-Prelog
-
Convention used to assign priorities to substituent groups. Used for
designating (R)/(S) configurations.
Chiral
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An object that is not superimposable on its mirror image.
Diastereomer
-
Stereoisomers that are not enantiomers.
Enantiomer
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Stereoisomers that are non-superimposable mirror images.
Meso
-
A compound that contains multiple stereocenters but is achiral due to an
internal plane of symmetry.
Stereocenter
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Short for stereogenic center. A component of a molecule that gives rise to
stereoisomerism. Often a carbon atom attached to four distinct groups.
Stereochemistry
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The spatial arrangement of atoms in molecules, and the study of how chiral
molecules behave in chemical environments.
